Dean Smith wants his team to start taking their chances as they look to end a run of four straight defeats in all competitions when they head to Preston North End this Saturday. The Bees' Head Coach has seen his side score just twice in four games and thinks that taking the chances they are creating will be key to getting a positive result at Deepdale against Simon Grayson’s side.
“We want to get back to winning ways on Saturday,” said Dean, speaking to Bees Player ahead of the match. “It will certainly be a tough game because they have come into form and they don’t concede many goals. It isn’t a team that we have had to research too much because I played them four times last year with Walsall. I know a lot about them and their players. Simon Grayson has done a great job with them and it is a game for us to look forward to.
“The chances that we have created have warranted more goals. We won my first game against MK Dons 2-0 but in terms of chances it could have been six or seven. We need to get back to taking the good chances that we have been creating. There has been a lot of good work going on during the week and hopefully that will come to fruition.”
Brentford were without the services of defender James Tarkowski for the 3-1 defeat to Burnley on Friday night as the 23-year-old refused to play against The Clarets. Dean revealed that the former Oldham man had trained with the squad this week but said he would not be considered for Saturday’s match.
“James Tarkowski was back training with us today,” said Dean. “We dealt with it internally in terms of discipline side of it. He won’t be available for selection on Saturday but we will play it by ear. He will be available moving forward for sure but I just feel that he needs to settle down a little bit and get back to fitness. He had a few days where he has not trained as I felt it was right to keep him away from the club for a while. He also needed time to reflect but now we are concentrating fully on Preston North End and we have put the James Tarkowski saga to bed.”
There was more positive news on the player front, however, as Dean revealed that Scott Hogan, who has not played since August 2014 due to a knee-injury, has been back training with the squad in recent weeks.
“Scott Hogan has been in non-contact training with us for the last three weeks,” said Dean. “It is frustrating for him because he wants to go all out but with the injuries that he has had it is very wise that we do take a lot of caution with him. He has done really well in what he has done and when he comes back it will be like having a brand new signing. I know how good a player he is from his time at Rochdale and if he is anything like that when he comes back, which I am sure he will be, we will have a really good player on our hands.”
Bees Player subscribers can view the full interview with Dean below